Dec 3, 2009

Everyone raves about my Bolognese sauce. I never really thought of it as a light dish and I usually make it when I have a large crowd over for dinner.

I decided to tweak my recipe to make this lighter version by using lean chopped beef, reducing the butter and using half and half instead of heavy cream. Results were just as amazing as always and quite frankly, you would never know the difference. The trick to a good Bolognese sauce is the longer it cooks, the better it tastes so this is a perfect Sunday meal. Let this simmer on low at least an hour and a half or up to 3 hours if you have the time.

Gina, or anyone who can help-- I'm new to your site, and new to WW pts. These recipes look INCREDIBLE, but how does your listing work? meaing, for exacmple, for this recipe, this makes 16 servings, but for the 106 calories and 2.25 ww pts, this only applies to 1/2 cup? Is this implying that each serving is 1/2 cup? Sorry for being such a newbie..

@Scott - When I thought about making this lighter, I thought about using turkey, but I really didn't want to change the flavor or texture of my sauce in any way. Using the lean ground beef was perfect.

@Amy - You're welcome!

@Lillian - Yes, each serving is a half cup. Which is plenty over 1 cup of cooked pasta as you can see pictures above.

My wife and I started WW on the 1st and stumbled upon your site. We made this tonight and I have to say I was amazed! It is restaurant quality Bolognese sauce...but with about 1/10 the calories! I have a feeling we will be frequenting your site often!! Thanks so much for sharing.

I made the Bolognese sauce and the flavor was excellent. My fiancé loved it. But I thought the Pancetta was tough. Can you please tell me what I did wrong? Do you know what the point value would be if I used the Pancetta and left out the ground beef.

Pancetta was tough? hmm, did you cut it in small (1/4") pieces and saute it on low? You don't want it to get crispy, it's just until the fat melts. If you eliminate the ground beef, it will no longer be a bolognese sauce.

Wow this is unbelievable!!!! Brought this to work for myself and my co-worker (who is an avid bolognese cook) and she was so impressed!!!! My kitchen smelled so good I had to check to see if I was in the right house!!!!!

You're funny Raquel! I agree, this Bolognese is out of this world!! This is one of those meals you can make for a dinner party, simply double or triple the recipe and make a big green salad on the side.

I made this tonight, and it was so good! I only had red wine so I used that, and omitted the celery. I also added crushed red pepper, because my husband likes a little heat. It's just the two of us, so I'm freezeing the leftovers and will get 4 dinners out of making one pot! Thanks for another great recipe!

Hi Gina,and Gina followers. I did make this recipe,according to the directions-exactly.(I think that's the fairest way to do/try a recipe the first time.) And it was delicous,delicous..super yummy. I look forward to having any left overs. I guess I did make a slight devation, I did add some FRESH sliced basil at the end. I love it when Gina's supporters actually try,and then report what they think about a recipe. Tellin me it's 'yum' doesn't work for me, as the ingrendents cost more than I can afford to waste.Therefore,this is why I've come forth to give a actual testimonial. This is a GREAT recipe!! Thanks Gina. rj

This is sooooooooooooo good! I made it Sunday afternoon and let it simmer for several hours. I served it today (Tuesday) with Barilla Plus pasta. Both my husband and I were glad I didn't warm up the whole dish or we'd surely have eaten a lot more than one serving. It's certainly going to be added to the "make again" list.

Thanks for this recipe, Gina. I made it last night and it is absolutely delicious - I can't wait for leftovers tonight!

I put it into my WW Online Recipe Builder, and the sauce alone, as made above, came to 5 points per serving with 8 servings. I'm confused about how there could be such a difference between that and your calculation! Any ideas?

this website is awesome---keep up the good work---think about a cookbook---softback--and in volumes---main courses--desserts--snacks,appetizers and drinks----the possiblitlies r endless---and this would make compiling easier, and more affordable for your customers---Just a thot----great great job done here!!!

Made this tonight for tomorrow's dinner. The pot is cooling in an ice bath in the sink. Tasted it and it is FABULOUS! I swear Gina your site has the best recipes! I don't feel like I'm eating "diet" food at all. Really is making the WW more tolerable. Thank you SO much! Karen

Fantastic! I lived in Italy while I was growing up and this was my favorite dish. I usually make Mario Batali's version (WW points off the charts!) and have to say...yours beats it, reminds me of the sauce I had when I was little. Thank you soooo much for all of the great recipes on this site. I always jump back onto WW when I've gained a few pounds, that's how I lost a whole bunch a few years ago, and your site is the first place I come for menu ideas...I've actually made many of your recipes on nights that I'm allowed to indulge (they taste indulgent!).Thanks again. You HAVE to do a cookbook! P.S. Petite turkey meatloaves are my go to, portion control, lunch and dinner recipe & are to die for! I make them into meatloaf sandwiches sometimes.... a bit of cranberry sauce, light mayo, and cruncy lettuce, heavenly.

I made this for dinner tonight - so delicious!! I literally ended up licking my bowl after. I'm freezing a bunch of it for nights when I don't have a lot of time. Thanks again Gina, this is such a great recipe!

No, I use really half and half because fat free bothers my stomach, not sure what's in it that does, but You could try it. I've cooked with fat free half and half in the past, but didn't like the results.

Making this now...my house smells awesome. I was on WW and lost 45lbs and now my boyfriend is watching his waistline. Thanks for making this lighter. I used "chili" cut beef, its a thicker cut, and I drained the fat...it the same kind of cut they used in Sicily when I lived there and my daughter's Nonna continues to use...I did add a pinch of nutmeg...simply because that's how I watched it done for so many years. I abosolutely love your site!!! Making the tortillini con brodo tomorrow...I used to love that on cold Sicilian nights :)

Bolognese sauce has always been my favorite, but I steer clear because of all the heavy cream. This was SO GOOD! I used ground turkey instead of beef. I only had one can of tomatoes so I added a can of Hunts traditional spaghetti sauce instead and I omitted the parsley (since the sauce was already spiced). We served it over a pasta mishmash. My husband had 2 HUGE servings! :-)

I made this for dinner tonight however I did not include the wine since I did not have any on hand. I also did not include the celery or carrots. One thing I was rather confused on was when to add the 1/2 and 1/2. I added it to the meat sauce right after I added the crushed tomatoes and bay leaf. We loved the dish it came out just right in my opinion. This is something I will make again. Thanks for sharing.

This bolognese sounds good. I have a great recipe for easy bolognese but the cream or half&half is added as soon as you brown the meat which makes it incredibly tender. It's interesting that your version adds the half & half at the end. I've never heard of doing it that way.

SO YUMMY!! SO AMAZING! My four year old, who wants nothing but pizza, kd and hotdogs ate EVERY SINGLE BITE! Thanks so very much! I raved about it on my blog as well! I think everyone should make this recipe. :)

This is SO good! You would have no idea its good for you :) My husband loved it! I couldnt find as lean of meat but mine was pretty lean will for sure make again! I made this with the chedder bisquits which were so good too!

Gina - I'm very new to your site and I'm in love. I actually feel like I can cook again where food is healthy yet still tasty and everyone loves it. I've already made a bunch of your recipes in the past week and it's been so fun!! I love that my first question to you is a silly one but on the white wine - is that real white wine or a cooking wine? Thank you!!

Just cooked up a pot of the sauce. My kitchen smells so good. I added some fresh basil at the end since I just bought a bunch. I can't wait to eat it for dinner tonight with my shiritaki noodles. Thanks for all the recipes!

I made this for dinner tonight and it is amazingly good!! I have already bookmarked several of your recipes. Tomorrow night is the tilapia with coconut curry sauce and Thursday is chicken enchiladas! I cannot wait to try them.

This is my favorite bolognese sauce recipe ever. So decadent tasting but low in points. Thanks Gina! Made a double batch and froze half and now I can have it again next week! Also, Walmart sells a fat free half and half that is just milk and cream. No additives like the other brands. It is all I use. It is their Smart Value brand. Compare it side by side to Land O Lakes and you will see what I mean ingredient wise. Only 1 Point per 1/3 cup!

Hi Gina, I accidently bought Procuitto instead of Pancetta - do you think it would work ok or should I just wait to have the right ingredients? Love your site - I am cooking exclusively from it - so yummy! I didn't see any other comments about anyone else making my silly mistake and I was really looking forward to trying this tonight for my kids 1st day back at school.

Made this and loved it! Used 90/10 ground sirloin, fresh basil instead of parsley (it's all I had), and fat free 1/2 and 1/2. It simmered on the stove all day and tasted so amazing! Very hard to eat only one serving over my one cup of Ronzoni Penne Pasta. Thank you so much for this recipe and this site - it's been a life saver for me on WW!!! - angie

Thank you for this recipe. I made this last week for me and my husband. We both thought it was delicious! We had leftover sauce that I saved and put in the freezer. We thawed it out 5 days later and ate it with spaghetti again!

I made this tonight and it was delicious! I used fat free half and half and it tasted great to me. We will be having it for lunch tomorrow (and Im sure the next day too!) This blog is awesome. I loved trying the recipes and not feeling guilty about great food.

Question: I get 3 points for the sauce alone. 2oz of pasta, even whole wheat is 5 points for 1 cup. How can this meal be 5.25 points? Please help. It's simmering now and tastes great... By the way, made my first ST recipe last night! Chicken, Provolone and Arugula Panini! It was a hit!! Even my teenager enjoyed it! Next time I'll have to use a softer bread though ;)

Thanks so much for the recipe...it was delicious. I love to cook and your site has been extremely helpful. Who knew eating healthy could be so much fun? I didn't have any pancetta so I left it out...next time I will make it the correct way. I'm not sure it can be any better:)

I did this on the stove on Sunday and it came out great! I lightened it even further by doing half ground beef and half ground chicken. You'd really never know the difference. The richness of the pancetta and beef still came through and the chicken filled it out. I was able to freeze enough for 3 more dinners.

As usual, the listed portion size on this recipe is very generous. I found 1/2 a cup with about 2 oz (uncooked) pasta plus salad to be plenty. Of course I had a couple more bites of the pasta and sauce, but only cause it tasted so good.

One of my favorites so far! I made this a few weeks ago and was blown away by how good it was. I did use 90/10 beef (not on WW - just trying to eat more healthy). I ended up letting it simmer for about 3 hours and it kept getting better. My one experiment was with the cream - I thought if I could save calories why not try. So at the end I split the sauce into 2 pots and added the half and half to one and left the other plain. The plain was good but the one with cream was awesome. It didn't change the flavor much, but it was so much smoother. Can't wait to have this again.

I made this for dinner and used spaghetti squash instead of real spaghetti so we wouldn't have the extra points. It was wonderful. My husband and I both loved it.And I will definitely make this dish again. And it is very filling.

What about letting it cook on low in the crock pot? I need to run errands this afternoon and don't necessarily want to leave my burner on while I'm gone. I found adorable red and white heart shaped pasta at Cost Plus so this is Valentine's dinner tonight!

Making this for Valentine's dinner tonight along with the dark chocolate chunk bread pudding. I was worried Valentine's dinner wouldn't be anything special since I am on Weight Watchers, but this is a first class meal! The sauce smells delicious! Can't wait till hubby gets home and smells it! Thanks!

I am new to the WW points counting, so I'll have to try this recipe. I currently live in Italy and LOVE the made from scratch, seasonal, fresh food (nothing is better than fresh pasta!). Traditionally, Bolognese is served with a mix of ground meats: beef, pork, and/or veal. A lean beef/veal combination would be very good and still lower in WW points. I don't remember how accessible veal is in the U.S., but it is used a lot in Italy and is really good! Also, I know it adds points, but a splash of good olive oil before serving is always delicious and, actually, healthy. Thanks! I'm looking forward to trying this. :)

Made this recipe tonight and it was pretty good. I just added a little more half and half which made all the difference. So, for my family, I will add 3/4 cup half and half. Otherwise it was really great.

I have this on the stove right now... and if I keep going back for more "taste tests" I will be out before dinner time. DELICIOUS even before the half & half and parsley have been added. Fantastic recipe, thanks!

So I have made this and was ammazing! Thankyou for creating this website.Next I was thinking of doing the same but subbing meat for canned tuna, added at a later stage and also adding leeks and mushrooms in with the onions and carrots.Does anyone think this will work or will it be awful!? I realise its not a bolognese but think it could be good! (And its what I have in my cupboard and want to use up!)Thanks again, great website and recipe :)

I made this and froze the leftovers. I just reheated the portion I froze and it was just as delicious the second time. My boyfriend is on the dash diet and he tried it and was amazed that it tasted so good with such a low calorie count. Thanks for the site! I think I'm going to be hitting it up hard with the bf on a diet.

I'm going to try to make this, but the pancetta is a little pricey for our budget and I don't really care for the turkey bacon couldn't you use extra lean ham (sandwich meat) from the deli counter? I have one other question? We are just using your site for low calorie meals we aren't doing WW when you do your calorie counts do you include the pasta or rice if the recipe is enhanced by the flavor of either one. This one I might use a spaghetti squash on......

Looking at the reviews, I'm sure this sauce is fantastic. I mixed this up last night and plugged in the crock pot today while at work. I tasted it last night after everything was combined and it didn't have much flavor. Do the flavors come alive after it cooks in the crock pot all day?

Made this today and my GOD it was delicious!!!! The cream really makes this dish. I have company coming this weekend... gonna take the left overs and freeze it for when they come over. Thank you Gina! I have tried several of your recipes and this one is one of the best so far!

Gina- On my way to the grocery store - this will be on the stove tomorrow. Seriously, your recipes and accompanying narratives are as good or better than most of the magazines or cookbooks out there. I certainly don't know anything about publishing but if there was a way to put together a digital version of your collected recipes and stories on your blog, I would CERTAINLY buy it to have it in my kitchen and to support your efforts!.. Thanks so much for your continued dedication! Linda O'Shaughnessy

I'm late to the party, this seems like a little known web secret! Have is on the stove now for my family and it does smell wonderful. I snuck a little taste and it was very good. I threw in a minced bell pepper since I had one on hand and fresh garlic since that never hurt anyone. Will be serving it with whole wheat pasta and whatever bag of veggies we grab out of the freezer. Will be checking out this site quite a bit more I'm sure! Thank you. KMM

I came home late from work and was planning on a quick jar sauce and spaghetti dinner but when I went to the pantry I found out I had no sauce. I had previous tried your Marinara sauce which was excelent,So I browsed your website for a quick meat sauce and stumbled upon this recipe....OMG!!!...the taste is unbelievable!, I used Turkey bacon since I was fresh out of pancetta too. I will never buy jar sauce again.

Gina, I made this yesterday for dinner and it was absolutely delicious!!! My family LOVED it! The only change I made was the half & half -- I actually forgot to buy it. But I did have fat free ricotta in the fridge, so I stirred in 1/2 cup of that. The sauce was so creamy and rich tasting -- and NO ADDED FAT!!!! Best Bolognese recipe EVER! Thank you!